I would like to start this process with a little help from y. A million word gap for children who arent read to at home. Rather than giving the students a homework assignment on the first day, i decided to give one to you. The early catastrophe american federation of teachers. The thirty million word gap a summary from the early catastrophe. How one easytouse homework assignment can help build positive relationships with your students and families. One thing that i would suggest to new and returnee teachers is something i call in a million words or less, tell us about your child. Parents or guardians in some cases want to brag about their kids. I would like to ask you to write about your student. Ive put a few questions below to get you thinking but please, tell me anything. First day of school back to school word doc community manager homework management texts teaching education. Tell me about your child in a million words or less.
In other words, children from families on welfare heard about 616. The new school year has brought new teachers, and one assignment in particular intrigued me. Million words or less parent homework assignment by. A million words a wonderful tool to connect with parents. A writing assignment given to me by my daughters english teacher in september of 2008.
A simple activity offers a powerful tool for learning about your students and connecting with their parents. It gives the teacher a chance to introduce herselfhimself to the parents and also get to know herhis students a little better by allowing the parents to tell and sometimes brag. I would like for you to write a letter to me to introduce yourself. I am very excited to have your sondaughter as one of my math students this year and am looking forward to getting to know himher in the upcoming months. Simply in words heard, the average child on welfare was having half as much experience per hour 616 words per hour as the average workingclass child 1,251 words per hour and less than onethird that of the average child in a professional family 2,153 words. Advisory is a 42 minute period that takes place during your childs day at lamuth. May 21, 2018 education plus development talking with children matters. Very eyeopening and a quick way to get to know your students better and get.
The assignment is for parents to describe their child in one million words or less. Last summer, teacher deborah bova introduced the million word essay to teachers on the middleweb listserv. The reason behind it is that it takes teachers a great deal of time to get to know your children. My daughter is hailey, she is in your 1st period 7th grade preap english class. The formation of neural connections during the first. I know that i am biased, but i have to tell you that son is one of the funniest people i know. Aug 27, 2010 this is the first week of school for the kids, and along with all the forms ive had to fill out again and again and again, 2 of my daughters teachers requested a paper to be written about my daughter. Thirty million sounds unfathomable, but, in reality, you get there one word at a time. In a million words or less tell me about your son or daughter. In a million words or less i a m th rille d tha t y o ur child is in m y class t his ye ar. I have been busily preparing and planning for your childs class. Weve captured the conversation in this middleweb million words resource file pdf. This is my attempt to complete the a million words or less tell me about your scholar project.
In a million words or less tell me what you think i should know about your child. By brad bosler the other day i was driving home from work, and i realized that i had not seen my daughter at all the last day. It is also part of a series of writing mini lessons designed for scaffolding in writing workshop. Dear parentsguardians, i want to take this opportunity to introduce myself and express my excitement about working with your child this year. And the longer the effort is put off, the less possible the change becomes. In a million words or less, tell me about your seventh grader. In a million words or less free download as word doc. If that teacher wanted one million words or less, shed get one million effing words. The 30 million word gap by age 3 by betty hart and todd r. Trying to tell you about my son in less than a million words will be a challenge. There are no extra prompts, explanations, or requirements. Researcher and author betty hart described the results of their observations.
The early catastrophe the 30 million word gap by age 3 by betty hart and todd r. A list of words that contain million, and words with million in them. Who would have thought that sending my daughter off to 7th grade would change that. We see 30 million words not to be just about reading.
If youre intrigued by this idea, see how he shaped the million words strategy to his. Tell me about your scholar yes, parents, you are getting a homework assignment. The reason behind this activity is that it takes us a great deal of. I am thrilled to have your child in my class this year. In a million words or less, please tell me about your child.
Getting to know your students from their parents learning lab. Seeing as i am a writer, i will do my best to keep it closer to 995,000. Im writing this letter in response to the assignment you gave the parents of your new ninthgrade english students. Last august at meet your teacher night, i gave all of my parents or guardians an envelope and a piece of paper with the words tell me about your a million words or less. Do your students struggle using strong word choice in their writing. The founder and director of the thirty million words initiative, professor dana suskind, explains why the most importantand astoundingly simplething you can do for your childs future success in life is to talk to him or her, reveals the recent science behind this truth, and outlines precisely how parents can best put it into practice. Education plus development talking with children matters.
Because it was my first year at the school and with these students, i wanted to be sure that i knew as much about them as possible. Would you please, in a million words or less, tell me about your child. I look forward to an exciting year of fun and learning with your young scholar. In a million words or less first week assignment the. Besides my signature, the rest of the paper remains empty, wide open for a response. Please complete the following information about your child. I like your million words or less i do something similar but in more of a question answer type format i. She had been out with friends, and i had been busy. For those who dont know, the assignment is for parents.
Johns sixth grade language teacher started out the year asking parents for a million words or less essay about their kids. He has an incredible photographic memory which is how i help him study. In a million words or less i have a lot of blogging to catch up on. Tell me about your scholar yes, you are getting a homework assignment. To get an idea of what one million words would look like for different grade levels, see the table below. At the early learning centers, we saw evidence that detroit is full of the sort of parents who, despite poverty, language barriers, and their own upbringings, are the sort who carve jackolanterns and want the best for their children. The reason behind this is that it can take us a while to get to know your child. My name is adam reed and i am fortunate enough to be your students 8th grade us history teacher. An outfit in austin, texas called the global language monitor has announced that the english language has one million words. This page brings back any words that contain the word or letter you enter from a large scrabble dictionary.
If youre intrigued by this idea, see how he shaped the million words strategy to his own needs. They love their child unconditionally and have more insight into their childs mind than. This year i sent home homework for the parents on the first day of school. Its been almost 15 years since ive been assigned homework by a teacher. If your childs teacher or someone told you to write a 1. It was called in a million words or less the assignment is for the parents, not the student.
I give this as parent homework for extra credit the first week of school. In addition to a lack of exposure to these 30 million words. Defending the 30 million word gap roberta michnick golinkoff, erika hoff, meredith rowe, catherine tamislemonda, and kathy hirshpasek. The kids love the title and the fact that the first person i am assigning homework to is their parents. It is with great excitement that we usher in the start of another school year. Dana suskinds work as a pediatric surgeon with the deaf helped her to understand the amazing power that words have on a childs development. In a million words or fewer free download as pdf file. Aug 14, 2017 this is my attempt to complete the a million words or less tell me about your scholar project. Words that contain million words containing million. When analyzing words and phrases in political contexts, glm uses the. These are all the words i shouldve said did i miss my chance. In the first month or so of school, the teacher asks parents to tell you about their child, in a million words or less. It is part of the revising stage of the writing process.
I am ver y exc ited to g et s t a r te d o n o ur p a th t o le ar ning to ge t her. Why 30 million words are critical to your childs future. We also have lists of words that end with million, and words that start. In a million words or less, tell me about your child.
Haley is just a couple months away from becoming a teenager. In a million words or less teaching, first day of school. If i dont hurry up ill have a years worth of pictures and events to post about all at once. Now im half a world away from you but youre always on my mind theres a million words that i couldve said and you might still be mine and if theres someone where i used to be i hope he tells you every day with the million words that i shouldve said. It was called, in a million words or less and consisted of parents being encouraged to write an essay no longer than a million words to tell the teacher anything they wanted them to know. One million words or less in an effort to get to know your child and hisher interests, needs, likesdislikes, and learning styles, i am assigning the first homework to the parentsguardians of. During a discussion of school startup ideas, deb wrote. Blackburn, jordan parent letter million words or less. I am very excited to have your child as one of my students this year. One of my favorite back to school activities is in a million words or less. In a million words or less tell me about your scholar. In addition to a lack of exposure to these 30 million words, the.
Thirty million words tells the story of a remarkable womans unrelenting mission to give every child the chance to thrive. Here are some examples that any parent can do to develop a rich language environment at home. It asks each parent to write the teacher a letter, in a million words. They know their children better than anyone on earth. We are all familiar with the staggering achievement gap seen in children from low socioeconomic status ses in the united states only 48% of lowses children are schoolready by age 5 80% or more of africanamerican and latino public school students cant read or do math at grade level in 4th, 8th, and 12th grades. The purpose of this assignment is to learn as much about your. I like your million words or less i do something similar but in more of a question answer type format i might try this idea this year thank you. Million word or less parent homework by funs not just for. I wanted to first say this projectassignment is such a great idea, and i hope i can provide you with everything you. Apr 04, 2019 young children whose parents read them five books a day enter kindergarten having heard about 1.
Tax code is seven times the length of leo tolstoys war and peace one of the longest reads of all among the academically minded. This post is geared towards the upper elementary or middle school curriculum and uses the term million dollar words when referring to word choice. This week is the first time i have ever met your son or daughter. Tackling the vocabulary gap between rich and poor children.
Read what others had to say about the million words activity. They almost universally want them to be successful in life. You may write as much or as little as needed, but it must be a million words or less. If your childs teacher or someone told you to write a 1 million word or less essay on everything about your.
In general, reading or listening to one million words is considered both a feasible and ambitious goal for students k12 and the inspiration for this initiative, but feel free to adjust this goal based on your own judgment. Tell me about your student in a million words or less. As the title above says, in a million words of less, tell me anything you would like me to know about your child. As i have already told the students, i do believe in homework, yet before i start to give them homework assignments i would like to give you one if you would be willing. After all, we now have something very special in common your child. Her language arts teacher sent home an assignment for the parents to tell her about your child in a million words or less. Risley d uring the 1960s war on poverty, we were among the many researchers, psychologists, and educators who brought our knowledge of child development to the front line in an optimistic effort to intervene early to forestall the terrible effects that poverty was having on some. After doing the activity, i was suddenly a part of each childs life, said teacher trisha fogarty. The reason behind it is that it takes teachers a great deal. Like a blank canvas, it invites parents to fill up the space with a colorful and layered picture of their child. Does she need to sit up front because its hard for her to see the board. I would love to have an open line of communication between home and school. Their assignment was to tell me about their child in a million words or less. Sep 05, 2011 it was called in a million words or less the assignment is for the parents, not the student.
I wanted to first say this projectassignment is such a great idea, and i hope i can provide you with everything you need to know about hailey. The million words activity basically works this way. As suskind explains, every routine and activity can be an opportunity for brain building and language. I then had them take the paper home, write as much as they wanted about their child, and return it to scho. This is the first week of school for the kids, and along with all the forms ive had to fill out again and again and again, 2 of my daughters teachers requested a paper to be written about my daughter. Getting to know youthis is the one of the most difficult challenges i face at the beginning of each school year. This 30 million word gap profoundly impacts childrens. These in a million words or less letters are an amazing resource to help build relationships with your students and families. It was still on my computer this morning so i thought i would share snipits of haley jo with you in a million words or less.
I would love to find out more about my students through their parents eyes. A million words or less about john marrs, 6 th grade a million words about john marrswhere to begin. My mentor teacher used this activity when i was student teaching and i fell in love. Tackling the vocabulary gap between rich and poor children children from lowerincome homes may hear 30 million fewer words by age 3. Parentdirected approaches to enrich the early language environments of children living in poverty kristin leffel, b. Jul 11, 2009 the idea was discovered while taking a college course at the university of montevallo. Dear room 430 families, i know that this time of year is especially busy and stressful and there are countless items on your to do lists, but i have a small assignment for you lets call it a bit of homework in a million words or less, tell me about your child. Feel free to download it, check out the links, look at the. In a million words or less tell me about your child. We had to write about our child so they could get to know them better.
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